Machine foe splitting hides



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J. E. FAIRBANKS.

MACHINE FOR SPLITTING HIDES.

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J. E. FAIRBANKS.A MACHINE POR SPLITTING HIDBS.

No. 539,472. mented May 21, 1895.

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J. E. FAIRBANKS. MACHINE FOR SPLITTING HIDES.

No. 539,472. Patented May 21, 1895.

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Nrrnn STATES JAMES E. FAIRBANKS, oF HILLSDALE, MICHIGAN, Assis-NOR orONE-HALF To AARON woRrr-HNG, or SAME PLACE.

MACHINE FOR SPLIT-Tmc Hines.

sPncIFrcATIoN ferming part of Lettere resent No. 539,472,11atea Meyai,i895.

" Applicata flied July 6,1894. serian... 516.755. (ne model.)

To @ZZ whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, J AMEs E. FAI'RBANKs, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Hillsdale, in the county of Hillsdale and State ofMichigan, have invented a new and useful.

Machine for Splitting Hides, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relatesto a machine for splitting animal hides toseparaterthe fur side io from the remainder or body portion ofthe hidein order that the formery maybe used in the making of articles ofapparel, and the lat- 'ter `in the manufacture of leather for boots,

. shoes, dre. AHeretoi'ore this object has been i5`effected bysuspending the hides and shaving from one side or the other in smallstrips, thus involving a considerable loss; audit is the object of myinvention to provide means whereby the hides may be split uniformly tozo form two integral sheets, the relative thickness of the sheets beingregulated by suitable adjusting devices embodied in the machine.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear in thefollowing description, and the novel features thereof will beparticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of a machine constructed inaccordance with my 3o invention. Fig. 2 is afront view of the same. Fig.3 is a vertical longitudinal section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4is a vertical transverse'section on the line 4 4 of Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is adetail view of the means for operating one of the knives. Fig. 6 is adetail View, in perspective, of the tension-roller and means formountingthe same. Fig. 7 is a longitudi nal central section of thetension-roller. Fig. 8 is a detail transverse section of the knives 4oand supporting-plate and the means for adjusting said knives verticallyand angularly. Fig. 9 is a detail transverse section of the knives andsupporting-plate, showing the means for adjusting the knives forwardly.

Fig. 10 is a detail section of one end ofa plate for supporting theyoke, on the line 10 lO'of Fig. 1, toshow the means for adjust-ing saidplate andv the yoke connected thereto. Fig. 11 is a transverse sectionof the drum to show same to show the manner of securing the n- Soothemeans for securing the hides thereto.

Fig. 12 is aview ofthe means for removing the hides-from the drum. Fig.13 is a view of a modified form of tension-regulating device.. Fig. 14is a transverse section of the gers or spurs to the roll. Fig. 15 is amodied form of means for removing the hides from the drum. Fig. 16 is aview of an emery-stone adapted for use in sharpening the knives of themachine. y

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all thefigures of the drawings. f

The framework of the machine consists of longitudinal base beams 1connected at their 65 extremities by transverse base beams 2, corneruprights 3 connected at their upper ends by the Vupper cross beams 4 andauxiliary end frames comprising the parallel juxtaposed standards 4awhich extend from the lower transverse beams 2 to the upperparallelbeams 4. Mounted in bearings 5 depending from the beams 4 are thetrunnions of the hidedrum 6, the upper side of said drum extendingslightly above` the plane of the upper sid es of the beamsv 4, andsimilarly ,mounted` in bearings 7, also depending from the end beams 4,is a shaft A8 which is parallel With the axis of the drum 6 and carriesbeveled friction pulleys 9, which have frictional contact with theoppositely beveled terminals 10 of the drum,whereby motion iscommunicated from the shaft 8 to the drum. The shaft 8 rreceives motionthrough a belt or drive-pulley 11 by means ofa belt. Not shown. Saidbeveled friction pulleys 9 are feathered upon the shaft 8 by means ofthe longitudinal keys 12, said pulleys being provided upon their outersides with collars 13 having peripheral grooves 14, in which are engagedthe forked extremities 15 of the hori- 9o zontally disposed levers 16.These levers 16 are supported by means of brackets 17, and are connectedat their rear extremities by means of links 18 to the handv levers 19,also fulcrumed upon said brackets 17. By this mechanism either'or bothof the gears 9 may be moved out of engagement with the drum. It will beunderstood that under ordinary circumstances the necessary mot-ion canbe imparted to the drum by means of one of these roo friction pulleys,and it is only when an excessive load is applied to the drum that bothare necessary.

Fixed to the shaft 8 adjacent to the friction pulleys are the spur gears20, which mesh with similar gears 21 on a shaft 22 which is mounted inbearings 23 on the upper side of the end beams 4. This shaft 22 isextended beyond the end beams 4 and is connected by means ofintermeshing gears 24 and 25 with shafts 26 and 27 which extend parallelwith the beams 4. These shafts 26 and 27 are provided with crank disks29 having wrist-pins 30, and said wrist-pins are connected by means ofintermediate devices, including the pitmen 31, with the juxtaposedreciprocatory splitting knives 32 and 33. Affixed to the extremities ofsaid knives are the upright ears 34 having feet 35, which are lbolted tothel knives, and pivotally connected to the said ears, and connectingthe same to pins 36 on the extremities ofthe pitmen 31, are theconnecting rods 37, said pins 36 being carried by the cross heads 38slidably mounted in guides 39. This arrangement of means for operatingthe knives insures the accurate horizoutalreciprocation thereof andavoids the pounding or jarring incident tothe direct connection of apitman thereto.

The splitting knives 32 and 33 are arranged between supporting plates 40and 4l, shown clearly in Fig. 8, which are arranged parallel with theknives and respectively above and below the same. These supportingplates are held at the desired interval` to allow free reciprocation ofthe knives by means of the terminal spacing blocks 42 arrangedrespectively at the ends of the plates and extending throughlongitudinal slots provided in the knives.

Arranged above the end bars 4 of the frame work are horizontal plates 44which support the extremities of a yoke 45 arranged parallel with andabove the splitting knives. These plates 44 are supported at theirextremities by means of bolts 46 provided at `their lower extremitieswith balls or knobs 47, which are mounted in spherical bearings formedby the depression 48 in the upper surfaces of the bars 4 and thecovering caps 49. Said bolts are threaded in perforatious in the bars44, whereby when the bolts are turned by means of `their milled heads50, said bars are adjusted vertically. In order to insure the necessarysteadiness of the plates 44 `irrespective of their adjustment, I employcushion-blocks 51, through which thebolts 46 extend, and it is obviousthat when theplates are adjusted upwardly, these cushion-blocks expandand fill the interval to form a rm bearing.

Secured to the upper side ofthe plate 40 are the spaced cleats 52, thefrontends of which are set back slightly from the front edges of saidplate, and the rear ends of which extend beyond the rear edge of thesame, said `rearwardly projecting terminals being connected by means ofstirrups 54 with cleats 53, which are secured to the under surface ofthe plate 4l and are arranged respectively below said cleats 52. Theportions of the cleats 52 and 53 in rear of said supporting stirrups 54are connected by means of set-screws 55, which are threaded iuperforations in thelower cleats and bear at their extremities againstthe under surfaces ofthe upper cleats 52. By means ot these set-screws55 the relative positions of the cleats 52 and 53 may be adjusted, andas the plates 40 and 41 are secured to said cleats, said adjustment ofthe cleats provides for regulating the pressure of the front edges ofsaid plates upon the surfaces of the splitting knives to cause thelatter to operate in effective contiguity.

As above described the terminals of the yoke 45 are attached tovertically adjustable supporting plates 44, and in order to provide forstill further vertical adjustment of the knives with relation to thesurface of the drum 6, I employ set screws 59 threaded in the yoke andprovided at their lower extremities with balls or knobs 58- which aremounted in spherical bearings in the upper sides ofthe cleats 52. Saidspherical bearings are formed by means of depressions 56 in the uppersurfaces `ofV the cleats, and caps 57 which are bolted over saiddepressions to complete the bearings. It will beseen that by themanipulation of the-bolts 59 the inclination of the splitting knives maybe adjusted in order to regulate the distance between the cutting edgesof said knives and the surface of the drum 6, as by extending theforward screw 59 the cutting edges of the knives may be lowered, and byan opposite adjustment of said bolt the cutting edges may be elevated.In addition to this angular adjustment, however, the knives may beraised or lowered simultaneously.

In order to provide for the horizontal ad justment of the splittingknives I employ U- shaped plates 60, which are attached to theextremities of `the plates 40 and 4l, and set screws 61 and 62threadedtin said plates and bearing respectively against the rear edgesof the knives 33 and 32. Itis preferable to make the kuife33of lesswidth than the knife 32 in order that interference of the set screws 61i and 62 in adjusting the knives may be avoided.

The cutting edges ofthe knives 32 and 33 are arranged so that they willlie directly above the drum 6 and tangential to its sur-v arranged atvarying distances from the cut ting edges of the knives to insuretheproper presentation of the hide to the latter.

The standard 64 is provided with feet 73 which are fitted in guides74secured to the beam 4. Said guides 74 are connected by a bar 74 withwhich the set-screw 75 engages said setscrew being fitted in aperforation in 78, and a series of independent metallic rings 79 whichare adapted to yield separately when an enlargement or increasedthickness passes thereunder. In order to insure a .steady pressure ofthe feed or tension roller upon the surface of the drum or hide arrangedthereon, and in order to provide forthe adjustment of this tension tosuit hides of different thickness, I employ a truss 80, provided at itsextremities with legs 81, which are bolted to the.

beams 4, and rigid arms 82` depending from said truss at intervals andcarrying plates 83 which are fitted between slightly separated ends ofthe rings 79 and through annular grooves 84 in the cushion 7 7, and areprovided with bifurcations which engage the shaft 76. Thus the pressureof the truss is upon the center or axis of the tension, and affects theentire rollwithout interfering with the yielding quality of any of theindependent metallic rings. It is obvious that suitable adjustment ofthe truss 80 must be provided to correspond with the adjustment of theaxis of the tension or feed-roller 70. n

The means for securing a hide to the drum consist of a clamping rod 90journaled in a longitudinal groove or channel 87 formed in the drum, thefloor of said groove or channel being formed by a segmental orarc-shaped casting or trough 89 bolted to the shell 85 of the casing, asshown at 88. Attached tothis clamping-rod 90, which is provided with asharpened clamping edge 91, is a handle 93 bearing a ratchet segment 94arranged in op-l erative relation with a spring actuated pawl 95, thehead 86 of the drumi being cut away,

as shown at 92 to provide for the adjustment of the clamping barv toengage the edge of' a hide. In operation the edge of a hide is inserted.in the groove or channel 87 and is engaged between the clamping edge 91of the bar 90 and the contiguous side ofsaid groove or channel, thehandle 93 being locked in the proper position to hold said clampingbarin engagement with the hide by means of the ratchet and pawl abovedescribed.

The essential reason for providing the above described mechanismforraising and lowering the plates 44 and 'their attached parts is tofacilitate the sharpening of the knives and particularly the lower knife33. This sharpening operation is effected by means of an emery board 96having a convex emery face 97 and a concave smooth face 98. The smoothface is adapted tolie upon the surface of the drum 6, and the `knivesshould be elevated sufficiently to cause the beveled under side of theknife 33 to bear upon the emery surface 97. The said knife may thenbereciprocated, as in operation, until .the desired edge has beenattained. The sharpening of the upper knife is accomplished in a similarmanner, except that the emery-board must be held by the operator inposition to bear against the upper beveled surface thereof. It will beseen that the cutting edges of the knives are provided with notches 63,thus forming serrated edges, which expedite the splitting of the hides.

In Fig` 12 I have shown the means for removing the hides from the drum6, and while I have not illustrated this mechanism in connection withthe general iiguresof the drawings, the arrangement thereof will beunderstood by a comparison of said Fig. 12 with Fig. l, in the latter ofwhich the pulley 112, by which said mechanism receives motion, is shown.The mechanism consists essentially of standards 107 adapted tobe-secured to the end beams 4 and provided at their upper extremitieswith bearings 109 for the reception of the windlass 108. At one end ofthis windlass, in alignment with the above mentioned pulley 112, is apulley 110, said pulleys being connected by means of the belt 111.Attached to the windlass is a series of cords, chains, or other flexibleconnections, which carry hooks 114 adapted to engage the hide. Theobject of this mechanism is not to assist in the feeding operation, butsimply to ta-ke up the slack as the hide leaves the splitting knives andhold the same in position for observation by the operator; and theoperation thereof, as will be readily understood, consists in the slowwinding of the cords, chains, or connections 113 upon the windlass 108until the hide is entirely disengaged from the drum. In Fig. 15 I haveshown a slightly modified form of this mechanism, in which the motion ofthe windlass 108 is derived from a weight 117 connected to the pulley110 by means of a cord-116. This Weight is sufficient to wind theflexible connections 113 0n IOO IOS

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the windlass, and thus take up the slack of knives arranged with theircutting edges conthe hide as it leaves the splitting mechanism.

In Fig. 13 I have shown a modified form of tension regulating deviceadapted to be substituted for the feed or tension roller 70, andconsisting of a shaft 99 having its terminals mounted in bearings 100 onthe beams 4, said shaft being formed in halves orl split longitudinallyto provide for the attachment of ngers 101, as shown clearly in thedetail section in Fig. 111. The halves or sections of the shaft 99 aresecured together by means of the screws 102. The means for operatingthis modified tension regulating device consist of a hand lever 103carrying a pawl 104, having a handle 105 and adapted to engage a ratchet106; and in operation said hand lever is raised sufficiently to causethe terminals of theiingers 10l to bear upon the upper surface of thehide, thus holding it in contact with the surface of the drum andinsuring the proper presentation of the hide to the splitting knives.The fingers -101 are preferably of spring metal, in order that they mayyield when encountered by obstructions or enlargements in the hides.

The operation of the various parts of-the mechanism have` been indicatedthroughout the above description, and therefore a detailed descriptionof the general operation of the machine is deemed unnecessary. It shouldbe noted, however, that the opposite reciprocation of the splittingknives prevents lateral vibration of the hides under treatment andinsures the proper splitting thereof, and that the means for adjustmentof the knives provide for arranging their cuttingA edges in properposition with relation to the drum to secure the desired thickness ofparts of the hide after the splitting operation has been completed. Thethickness of a hide occasionally varies at different points, and bymeans of these adjusting devices the knives may be changed during theoperation of splitting to form one or the other of the sections of thehide of a uniform thickness throughout. For instance it may be desiredto form the fur side of a uniform thickness, and therefore when athinner portion of a hide is reached the knives are adjusted toward thedrum, and when a thicker portion of the hide is reached, said knives areadjusted from the drum; also a second and subsequent splitting of thehide may be accomplished by means of the mechanism above described, theknives being adjusted closer to the drum after the completion of eachoperation.

It will be understood'that in practice various changes in the form,proportion, and the minor details of construction may be resorted towithout departing from the spirit of the invention or sacrificing any ofthe advantages thereof. i

Having described my invention, what I claim is- 1. The combination of adrum, means for securing hides thereto, parallel juxtaposed tiguous tothe surface of thedrum, means for reciprocating said knives in oppositedirections, and means for` rotating the drum, substantially as specied.

2. The combination of a drum, means for securing hides thereto, parallelsplitting knives provided withserrated cutting edges arranged adjacentto the surface of said drum, means for reciprocating the knives inopposite directions, and means for rotating the drum, substantially asspecified.

3. The combination of a drum, means for securing hides thereto, paralleljuxtaposed splitting knives, parallel spaced upper and lower platesarranged respectively above and-below said splitting knives, means forsupporting said plates, adjusting devices carried by the plates andarranged in operative relation with the knives to adjustthem in theplane of their widths, means for `reciprocating the knives, and means'for operating the drum, substantally as specified.

4. The combination of a drum, means for securing hides thereto, parallelreciprocatory splitting knives, upper and lower plates arrangedcontiguous to the upper and lower surfaces of said knives,\means forsupporting said plates, U-shapcd bars connecting said plates near theirextremities, set screws mounted in said bars and impinging against therear edges of the splitting knives, means for reciprocating said knives,and means for operating the drum, substantially as specified.

5. The combination of a drum, means forsecuring hides thereto, parallelreciprocatory splitting knives, and means for operating the same, upperand lower supporting plates for the knives, cleats secured respectivelyto the the said upper and lower plates and connected for angularadjustment, means for supporting the upper cleats, adjusting devices forregulating the interval between said upper and lower cleats, and meansfor operating the drum, substantially as specified.

6. The combination with adrum, and means for operating the same, devicesfor securing hides to the drum, parallel reciprocatory splitting knives,and means for operating the same, upper and lower plates 40 and 4l,upper and lower cleats secured respectively to said upper and lowerplates, st-irrups carried by the upper cleats and supporting the lowercleats, set screws connecting the rear extremities of said cleats toadjust their relative po. sitions, and means for supporting the uppercleats, substantially as specified.

7. The combination with a drum, and means for operating the same, of ayoke, parallel spaced upper and lower plates, cleats securedrespectively to said upper and lower plates and arranged transverselythereto, the lower cleats being suspended from the upper cleats andbeing capable of angular adjustment, adjusting screws threaded in theyoke and having spherical terminals fitted in similar bearings in theupper cleats, reciprocatory split- IOO IIO

ting knives mounted between said upper and lower plates, and means foroperating the knives, substantially as specified.

8. The combination with a drum, and means for operating the same, ofupper and lower spaced plates, upper and lower cleats securedrespectively to said upper and lower plates, the lower cleats beingsuspended from the upper cleats and being capable of angular adjustment,means for securing saidcleats at the desired angular adjustment, a yokeextending over and parallel with said plates, adjusting screws threadedin the yoke and provided with spherical terminals tting in similarsockets in the upper cleats, two of said screws, one in front of theother, being employed for each cleat, reciprocatory splitting knivesarranged between the planes of said plates, and means for operating theknives, substantially as specified. f

9. The combination with a drum, and means for operating the same, of ayoke, means for adjusting said yoke vertically, upper and lower parallelplates, upper and lower cleats secured respectively to said plates andconnected for angularpadjustment, means forsecuring said cleats at thedesired angular adthe knives, substantially as specified.

10. The combination with a drum, and means for operating the same, of ayoke, supporting plates to which the terminals of said yoke areattached, adjusting screws engaging -the extremities of said supportingplates,r

cushion blocks arranged beneath said sup- .porting plates, knife guidingdevices supported from the yoke, reciprocatory splitting knives mountedin said knife-guiding devices, and means for operating the knives,substantially as'specitied.

1l. The combination with a drum, and means for operating the same, hidesplitting knives, and operating connections, of a feeding and tensiondevice having a rotary shaft, a cushion fitted upon said shaft,independent yielding facing rings inclosing said cushion, a trussarranged parallel with the axis of said shaft, and rigid connectionsbetween said truss and intermediate portions of the shaft to preventdeection of the latter, substantially as specied.

12. The combination with a drum, and means for operating the same, hidesplitting knives, and operating connections, of a feeding and tensiondevice having independent resilient members to bear upon a hidetraversing the drum, and adjusting means for `ing and tension deviceconsisting of a roller adapted to bear upon a hide traversing the drum,standards having slots concentric with the drum, bearing-blocks for saidroller fitting slidably in the slots, means for adjusting said blocks,clips engaging the feet of the said standard, a connecting bar betweenthe clips, and a set screw engaging the standard and said connectingbar, whereby the standard may be adjusted toward and from the roller tofacilitate the mounting and dismo'unting thereof, substantially asspecified. y

14. The combination with a drum, and means for operating the same, hidesplitting knives, and operating connections, of a device for removingthe hides from the drum and having a windlass, exible connectionsattached to the windlass and bearing hooks to engage a hide, andoperating connections between the windlass and said drum substantiallyas specified.

15. The combination of a drum provided with beveled extremities,oppositely beveled friction pulleys arranged in operative relation withsaid beveled extremities of ,the drum, means for adjusting said pulleysto remove one or the other thereof from Contact with the drum, andoperating mechanism for the friction pulleys with hide splitting knives,and means for operating the same, substantially as specified. Y 16. Thecombination of a drum provided with a longitudinal groove or channel, ahalfround clamping rod mounted for partial rotation in the groove orchannel and having an edge to co-act with one side of the groove orchannel, a handle attached to said rod and arranged within the drum nearan opening in the end of the latter, and ratchet locking devicescomprising a toothed-segment carried by the clamping rod and aspring-actuated pawl to engage the same, substantially as specified. Y f

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

' JAMES E. FAIRBANKS. Witnesses:

I. B. OWENS, JOHN H. Siecnns.

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